16 patches patches/instruments have scripted interfaces for extended sound manipulation, a snapshot system especially developed for this library allows the user to save and recall 5 snapshots, or recall the 5 snapshots programmed into the patches by default. So on top of the 75 patches this library ships with another 64 snapshot variations.

All non-scripted patches have the Modwheel and the 8 Macros assigned in the info tab, quite a few also use Aftertouch. Many patches integrate the wealth of MachFive's sound generators and combine them with granular and normal sampling. In many patches temposynced modulators are used to animate the amplitudes and filters of the involved samples and sound generators, often keyswitchable sound combinations or different articulations are available within one patch. ?All patches which have several different sounds split across the keyboard (often over a range of six octaves or more) use key-colouring in MachFive's keyboard which makes it easier to navigate through the various split sounds.

All acoustic instrument-samples in this library are recorded in a dry studio environment with top notch Neumann microphones in L-C-R at 48 Khz/24 Bit. All microphone signals are phase-aligned which enhances the stereo field and the transparency of the recorded samples.

The Snapshot system
The snapshot system especially developed for this library allows the user to save and recall 5 snapshots, or recall the 5 snapshots hard-coded into the patches by clicking on the "Reset" buttons at the bottom of the snapshot interface. To access the snapshots just click on the "Snapshots" button at the top right of the interface.

You can view/download the PDF for this library with more details, the licence agreement, and the patchlist including descrtptions and playing tips here.

All demos were produced entirely with MachFive 3 using only patches from Ambient Strings, no post-processing was applied apart from a limiter on the outputs and some volume automation, if several instances of MachFive were used in a track.

Here is a demo for the patch "Violin Space Pad", 10 long multibowed sustained notes sampled across the whole instrument range processed with various things, extended to the low register by copying samples from the respective keyzones above, so the total instrument range is from C0 - C6.

Here comes a demo for "Flageolet Synth" - 10 different flageolet pitches (classical acoustic guitar/nylon strings) sampled at 5x round robin, extended to the lower region so the instrument range becomes C1-C5. Layered with an FM synth in unison mode. Velocity controls attack time (inverted). The synth module can be tuned to intervals (-12/-7/-5/unison). This will be scripted patch with plenty of controls in the interface.

Here is a demo for “Cello Portato Layers" using freshly multisampled cello portato samples recorded today.
I was improvising with this sound live on harddisk tweaking the 8 Macro controls and the Modwheel on the fly.

Three new patches in this darkish demo, pizzicato bass sequence sliced using MachFive's beatslicer, multisampled spiccato cello textures in granular mode run through a tuned combfilter, sul ponticello drones mixed with an FM synth:

Here comes a demo for the patch "Trill Scape", multisampled and somewhat processed violin trills in timestretch mode, layered with an FM synth and another processed cello trill. The trill speed of the violin is controllable and corresponds to the modulation speed in the FM synth (or vice versa). I think this will also be a scripted patch.

I had dreamed of a snapshot system in MachFive for longer now which let's the user store and recall snapshots of the control settings. Especially with more complex patches which offer a lot of knobs and sliders to the user so many different sounds are possible within one patch, that I wanted to be able to capture and store those. Now my scripter Iain Morland has coded this and it works like a charm. So quite a few of the scripted patches in this library will let you store/recall your own snaps. I'll setup 5 hard coded snaps as well, which can be restored at any time as they are part of the script. If the user want to permanently store his own snaps, he just resaves the patch, either under a new name or overwriting the inital patch.

Here comes a demo for the patch Major Clouds Split, layered major goodness all derived from arpeggiated cello and violin chords. I think this has to be scripted patch as there are so many controllable things and the 8 Macros, Modwheel and Aftertouch which I have currently assigned don't cover all of the controls I'd like to have.

Multisampled psaltery tremoli in unison mode (3 voices, Modwheel for detuning up to +/- 1 octave) with two keyswitchable articulations (plectrum and chop sticks) meets Cello Glissando Scanner, where you can scan through two multisampled gliss phrases with the wheel/Macro and add all sorts of temposynced modulations (triplet based):

Jamming with three fresh patches in this track, temposynced cello loops multisampled over an 2 octave range, with keyswitches for either finger plucked pizz or drumstick beaten pizz, then we have Spilt String Scapes which have temposynced modulations for filter and amplitude on board, and the solo sound is named Sul Pont synth, multisampled sul pont cello mixed with FM synth also keyswitchable for different electronic layers. It's so good just to just jam with these sounds after all those days of sample editing....

This new demo track combines two fresh patches all with electric guitar sounds or derivatives thereof, splits and layers, one MachFive synth involved involved layered with one of the guitar drones, all fully controllable. This one is quite a trip:

Two fresh patches with various electric guitar flageolets samples and textures are used in this ambient demo, this was played live in two passes including all the Macro controller tweaks, Modwheel and Aftertouch:

Quick impro with the patch Granular Vibrato Bows - multisampled vibrato cello notes with long bowing (8-10 bows per note), in the demo I was controlling the bowing speed with a Macro, controlling cutoff with the Modwheel and sometimes adding some overdrive with another Macro, played live on disk:

This is a demo for the patch Vc Vln Tremolo Mix using long mutisampled tremolo samples, each note has 2 dynamic waves where the bow moves towards the brigde and back creating a transition of harmonics, a keyswitch let's you add a wavetable synth which uses an imported single cycle from a cello sustain, you can control it's volume in the interface. The cello plays up to C3, then the violin takes over up to C5, all thirds (sometimes minor, sometimes major) were sampled. Sample start can be randomized with the Modwheel (up to 50%) or you can set sample start with a controller. Lot's of filtering and FX options/sounds are available.

Here comes a new demo combining two patches, Granular Glissandi made with multisampled cello octave glissandi and their electronic derivatives, you can keyswitch between natural and electronic gliss, control the gliss speed, or freeze the sound and control sample position with the Modwheel/Macro and do all sorts of other things with it. The other patch uses processed arpeggiated minor chords from violin/cello in split mode, layered with an arpeggiated synth. Both patches will have scripted interfaces.

Here comes a new demo combining two fresh patches - Violin Spiccato Synth which combines multisampled spiccato violin with 3x round robin with a analog synth module in unison mode, in the background there is the patch Oud Rattle Drones and Ebow, combining rattling oud drones in the lower keyboard region with multisampled e-bowed western guitar in the upper region.

EDIT:

And here is another new patch - Combed Cello Grains Split, demo played live on HD tweaking the 8 Macros, Aftertouch and the Modwheel on the fly:

New demo combining 3 fresh patches, all sounds you here are derived from violin samples, where the instrument was tuned to G-D-G-D, so one can play arpeggios and textural stuff just on open strings only resulting in octaves, fourths and fifths. 100% MachFive, 3 instances are used in the demo, tweaking some of the Macros, Aftertouch and Modwheel on the fly. The natural samples play in split/granular mode and are layered with their processed counterparts in sampling mode, full control over levels and numerous parameters is available, I'm not sure yet if I can afford the scripting of all of these violin patches but I'll try.

These patches belong to the most magical ones I've done in my life, I could bath for months in these sounds.

Finishing this working Sunday with a granular flautato pad, layering musltisampled long-bowed violin flautatos with an analog synth module in unison mode (3 voices). Tweaking the 8 Macros and the Modwheel on the impro fly, changing things like bowing/sample speed, filter/pan animation, tuning of the synth's tuned bandpass filter up an octave, flanger amount, detuning the grains and the synth uni detune and more.

Here is demonstration of the patch "Minor Clouds Split" which now also has a scripted interface.

Minor Clouds Split
In the lower half a processed arpeggiated cello minor texture is playing in granular mode (root: D2, range C0-C3), in the upper half there is a processed violin cloud derived from arpeggiated minor chords playing in granular mode (root: G4). Both sounds are layered with a synth module which produces fast minor arpeggios, set the arpeggio speed of the synth in the interface, control the granular speed of the string clouds with the control knob, scan through the samples using the Modwheel or the interface control. Overlapping split point is C3.

Today was flageolet day, here is a demo impro for the patch "Flageolet Meditation" - playing long overtone transitions with natural harmonics on the open cello strings (up to 1+ minute long), these are layered with their respective long bowed route note. 3 keyswitchable combos are available, route + tuned harmonics (tuning all harmonics to a tempered scale with Melodyne which took many hours as it doesn't work well automatically), route + original harmonics (as played), and route+tuned harmonics in unison mode where there is a sample offset between the 2 overtone cellos, so you have two cellos playing harmonics on top of each other plus the route. Volume controls for route + overtones are available, sample position can be controlled, temposynced amplitude and filter modulation can be introduced, temposyncced pitch modulation (square-shaped up to +/- 1 octave), chorus/analog delay, and reverb controls are there too.

This is such a beautiful patch, I'll also make some granular versions.

Played live on HD tweaking the 8 Macros and the wheel on the impro fly: